A Moral Reckoning
- Noa Sattath
- Jul 28
- 2 min read
July 27, 2025
Dear friend,
For nearly two years (an amount of time that I struggle to wrap my head around), the value of human life, and of the lives of Palestinians especially, has been cheapened to the point of irrelevance. This moral decay is unsustainable, and there will be a reckoning. It is not just Gaza that will need to be rebuilt, but the moral fabric of Israeli society—work that will require not only individual citizens, but the systems that have failed us for so long throughout this war. As I wrote in an op-ed for the Israeli newspaper Haaretz:
The generations to come will have to pay the costs of the war. The physical reconstruction of Gaza will take years and will dog our children and grandchildren. A form of damage that's less measurable but perhaps even more significant is the cheapening of human life...
We need a combination of forces to extricate ourselves from the moral abyss into which we have tumbled. We not only need a political leadership that isn't afraid to tell the public the truth, but also functioning legal institutions...
We also need a media committed to the truth, one that shows the public the horrific incidents for which this government is responsible. We need an education system that isn't afraid to teach our children to fight for democracy, humanism and peace instead of being preoccupied with the fanciful race to get into combat units.
We need courageous artists who aren't afraid to write, create and show the public the truth through theater, poetry, museums and film as only artists can.
All of these institutions have been crushed and ground to dust during the almost three years that the most destructive government since the state was established has been in power...
But alongside a degree of understanding for the circumstances that have led to the collapse of all these glorious institutions, this is a wake-up call. Brush off the dirt and start rebuilding the foundations on which you stand.
We must not lose the opportunity to hold ourselves, our institutions, and our leadership to account and to engage in the process of rebuilding. A different way forward, and a different future, is possible, if, as we at ACRI like to say, human rights serves as our compass.
Be part of building this future. Donate now.
We have not forgotten: 🛑 Stop the killing and starvation in Gaza 🛑 Stop the abandonment of the hostages 🛑 End the war. Now.
